The present invention relates generally to the field of telecommunications, and more particularly, to an intelligent or advanced application, such as an Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN) application, for automatically establishing a video conference session.
Desktop video conferencing is a relatively new computer application that has received significant interest. Desktop video conferencing allows individuals, who may be remotely located from each other, to see and hear each other using a computer system interface. A user with access to a computing system such as a personal computer is able to see and hear another person who similarly has access to an adequately equipped computer interface. Typically, audio and video data are communicated between computing systems over a network such as the Internet.
Generally, a computing system for engaging in a desktop video conferencing session comprises specialized software and hardware. Specifically, a system might comprise a camera for collecting images, a microphone for collecting voice input, speakers for playing voice output, and a display monitor for displaying images. A computing system suitable for video conferencing may also comprise software for performing functions related to the video conference including the following: receiving inputs from input peripheral devices, transmitting the received data to another computing system, receiving video and audio data from the other computing systems, and controlling the output peripheral devices to present the received video and audio data.
In existing systems, establishing a video conference session requires the operator of a first system to coordinate with the operator of a second computing system to insure that the software and peripherals of their respective systems are compatible and operational. Furthermore, existing video conferencing systems require that both parties establish an account with a video conferencing service and be logged into that service when it is desired to establish a video conference. Often, coordinating system compatibility and simultaneous log-in to a video conference service is a non-trivial task that requires significant human interaction.
Illustrative systems and methods for establishing a video conference session are disclosed herein. An illustrative system for establishing a video conference session comprises a first service switching (SSP) point, a second SSP, and a service control point (SCP). A user that desires to establish a video conference session dials a designated key sequence such as, for example, *23 on their telephone. This defined key sequence is detected at the first SSP and indicates to the SSP that a video conference is being requested. Thereafter, the user dials a telephone number, wherein the number is recognized by the SSP as the telephone number of the party with which it is desired to establish a video conference session.
The first SSP communicates a request to the SCP to query pre-stored information identifying characteristics of the computing systems associated with the telephone number from which the request was made and characteristics of the telephone number with which it is has been requested to establish a connection. The first SSP uses information received from the SCP to forward instructions for activating a computing system at the first telephone number. The second SSP uses information retrieved by the SCP to forward instructions for activating a computing system at the second telephone number. After both systems have been activated, data is communicated between the two.